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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 26, 2018)
History Blue Mountain Eagle B3 Kickin’ up Prairie dirt — yesterday and today A letter from the gold rush days The following letter, re- printed from the June 28, 1956, edition of the Eagle is said to have been writ- ten in 1863 by Bradford C. Trowbridge, father of Charles Trowbridge of John Day, to his father in Dixon, Illinois: Dear Father, This is the first chance I have had to write you since I arrived at this gold discovery last June 9. The first pony express leaves here today with Frank Mc- Bean rider, so I will try to tell you briefly what has happened. Some of those who came in here with me are Phil Metschan, Bill Southworth, George Ha- zeltine, Oliver Cresap, Van Middlesworth, Pat Mul- care, Martin Lucas and of course, my brothers, No- ble and Lyman. Atwood Sproul is digging a ditch to wash upper benches. We have arrived here on June 9 last year and were the first arrivals after Bill Alred made the discovery of gold on what we have named Hog Point. Min- ers kept coming in by the hundreds and now there must be several thou- sand here and they are still coming. They have discovered placer gold in the country east of here and a town has been built named Marysville about two miles east, and there have also been rich dis- coveries at Prairie Dig- gings farther east. The miners had a meeting a short time after we got here and they decided to let a miner locate a claim 75 feet up and down the bottom of Canyon Creek and from hill to hill. I didn’t take one of those claims, but decided to take squatter’s rights on the John Day River above the mouth of Canyon Creek and go to farming Wednesday, September 26, 2018 as I had brought in some good cows and could sell milk and vegetables to the miners. I delivered some radishes and onions today and found a ready market as you can imagine. Later, I’ll have corn and pota- toes and some other veg- etables. A saloon was started on what we have named Whiskey Gulch, which is a gulch with no pay dirt in it. They put up a tent and a few barrels of whiskey was brought in by mule team from The Dalles, up on the big Columbia River. Some hurdy-gurdy girls have come in and they have a dance hall in anoth- er tent with a floor made from puncheon logs and strips from small logs. The dance hall is getting a good play, and it and the saloon are getting a lot of the gold. Ralph Fisk, who came in with us last year is the fid- dler and some Swede plays the accordion. A few women have come in and some of the men who are married have built log houses. Some of the women are Mrs. Lucas, Mrs. Andrew McCallum, Mrs. George Hazeltine and Mrs. Van Middlesworth. Both the latter are McCallum’s daughters. He is a Scots- man and flour miller and millwright, and is talking of building a mill here as a few of the miners have turned their hands to farm- ing, and wheat and oats are doing fine. Hope that you and mother can come out as soon as the Indians qui- et down. Once in awhile, there is trouble with them and we expect a real out- break anytime now. I’ll give this letter to McBean and hope it reach- es you within the month. Your affectionate son, Bradford School football field was once a rodeo grounds By Cheryl Hoefler For the Blue Mountain Eagle If you close your eyes, you can almost see a calf being roped at about the 40-yard line. For years, players of one kind or another have been kicking up dirt — along with spills and thrills — to cheering crowds in the open air at the south end of Prai- rie City. Today, the town’s Panthers football team punts, kicks and throws pigskins on autumn Friday nights at the Prairie City Athletic Complex. Years ago amateur rodeo contestants bucked, rode and roped live animals on summer weekends in the same location. For over 40 years, from about 1920 to at least 1963, Prairie City was home to its own annual amateur rodeo. The gala featured all the calf roping, bull riding, bronc bucking and horse racing ac- tion you’d expect from a top- notch rodeo, with contestants from Oregon and beyond vy- ing for cash and prizes. Fes- tivities also usually included children’s competitions, a main parade plus one for the kids, live music, lots of food, a dance and the pageantry of a royal court reigning over it all. According to an Aug. 2, 1956, Eagle article, the first Prairie City Rodeo was held 37 years prior, and was pro- duced by Ab Bradford of the Cowboy Stampede, longtime sponsors of the Prairie City Eagle file photo Nellie Carter, center, reigned as queen of the Prairie City Rodeo held July 14-15, 1962, at Prairie City. Carter, along with princesses Melda Kelly, left, and Beverly Newton, right, rode in the street parade Saturday, preceding the first day’s rodeo events. Contributed photo/Jim Hamsher The Prairie City Rodeo Grounds, unknown date. event. In the early years, the rodeo was held on Indian Creek at the Muldrick Ranch, later owned by R.J. Stanbro. For three years during World War II, there was no Lori Hickerson, Principal Broker, GRI 541-575-2617 • ljh@ortelco.net Sally Knowles, Broker, GRI rodeo. However, when it re- sumed in 1947, riding on post-war enthusiasm, it flour- ished into a two-day event in mid-June. The date fluctuated from year to year, but the rodeo was always a summer event. Through the 1940s and early 1950s it was usually held in mid-June. In 1954, there were even two rodeos — in June and September. In 1955, it was moved to Labor Day weekend. The next year, organizers decided to bump the date back up a month, to early August, to al- low more time between it and another major area event, the Grant County Fair. The rodeo court usual- ly hailed from all corners of Grant County. In 1949, Queen Patsy Galbraith of Prairie City was attended by princesses Kathryn Swearinger of Prairie City, Betty Cant of Dayville, Arlene Carson of John Day and Pauline Fanning of Long Creek. Some years the rodeo had a theme. The 1953 two-day event was dubbed, “The Fast- est Show in the West.” The 1960 rodeo, with the theme, “Something Old, Something New,” featured a Sunday af- ternoon chariot race. Occasionally over the years, rodeo events were held at other locations in Prairie City. However, the main ro- deo grounds was where to- day’s school football games and track meets are held — with contestants and specta- tors gathered, enjoying the same spectacular Strawberry Mountain backdrop. So the next time you’re at a Panthers home football game, look beyond the goalposts, the new eight-lane track and those dazzling lights. You just might hear the echoing cheers and yells from rodeo days gone by. 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